This invention relates to systems and methods of monitoring the operation of automotive vehicles.
Very often vehicles are operated by persons other than their owners. In those situations the owners normally have a vested interest in seeing that their vehicles are operated in a safe and prudent manner. For example, the backs of trucks are often marked, xe2x80x9cHow is my driving? Call (a certain telephone number).xe2x80x9d Rental car companies also have an interest in seeing that their cars are not mishandled. Government agencies too sometimes need to maintain surveillance on the operation of their law enforcement vehicles.
Truck and van lines, rental car agencies and governmental agencies have substantial resources available in which to monitor vehicle operation. For example, they sometimes mark the roofs of vehicles with identification numbers that may be observed by helicopters. As shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,742,336 airlines can utilize satellites in feeding video signals to ground stations so that ground personnel can monitor in-flight instruments. Law enforcement agencies also use geopositional transmitters and satellites.
As opposed to organizations with substantial resources, individuals have a far more limited means available to them for this purpose. Thus parents, for example, have had to rely on word of mouth reports as to how their adolescent children drive a family car. Though engine governors are available to limit speed, they are rarely used today. Thus a need has long existed for a way of monitoring the driving of adolescent children which is cost effective, both in terms of equipment and time efficiency, and yet which may be achieved with reasonable cost economy. Accordingly, it is to the provision of such that the present invention is primarily directed.
In a preferred form of the invention, operation of a vehicle is monitored with an on-board video camera having a video data line linked with a radio transceiver from a home base computer. Communication is established between the home base computer and a monitoring service computer on the internet. An initial signal is transmitted to the monitoring service which radio relays a transmit signal to the on-board transceiver. Video data is then transmitted from the on-board radio transceiver to the home base computer for viewing with a monitor. Later, a terminate signal is transmitted from the home base computer to the monitoring service which radio relays a terminate transmission signal to the on-board transceiver thereby disestablishing communication between the home base computer and the monitoring service computer.
In another preferred form of the invention a system for monitoring operations of a vehicle from a home base comprises a home based computer and monitor, a service monitor computer linked with the home based computer via the internet and linked with a radio wireless transceiver, and a video camera mounted in the vehicle. The video camera has a video data line connected with an on-board CPU, modem and wireless radio transceiver. So constructed a home based person may go on line with the service monitor web page and have the service monitor initiate transmission of video data from the vehicle to enable the home based person to view such via the internet.